The Majority of Netflix Subscribers Will Be International Within 2 Years

By Aarthi Rayapura • August 24, 2016

By Lucinda Shen

Netflix’s aggressive push into international markets might just pay off, according to a new report.

The streaming services’s international subscriber base is expected to outpace the company’s U.S. subscriber base by 2018, according to data analytics firm, IHS Markit.

“By 2018, international subscribers will overtake the number of subscribers in the US for the first time, and by 2020, Netflix will have 75 million international subscribers,” IHS Technology senior analyst Irina Kornilova wrote in a Tuesday note. “By 2020, Netflix global revenues are expected to reach $13 billion, with 53% accounted for by Netflix International markets. Domestic streaming revenues are expected to hit $6.2 billion by 2020, and international revenues to reach $7 billion.”

That comes as domestic subscriptions have slowed in past quarters, pressuring the video streaming service to enter international markets. As a result, Netflix has rolled out multiple languages, streams in over 190 countries, and has created several localized foreign original shows with international appeal such as Spanish-language Narcos.